kurthicks

I just got some stuff too. I'd like to see a gray ringer t-shirt (with blue rings) with the 'Alpinists do it longer' on it. I'd buy one of those.

Borah is pretty chill from the standard SW route. maybe class 4 in one 10' spot, but there was a fixed line when i was there. If you're keen on the NF though, let me know.

the Palouse. aka eastern WA, south of Spokane. Hopefully the Bugs will be my other home, at 6 hours away.

beat that.

2 of the pins are pretty old, so take them at your own risk. The biner was booty from a Smiff trip a few weeks ago. I don't think rapping the route would be the recommended descent--it cut a little climbing out and some of the fun, but it was a reasonable option with the conditions we had.

I'm getting pretty close to being ready to haul Dan's up the big hill. It helps that I broke trail/led almost the entire weekend. Here's a rundown of the belay/rap stations: 1: 3 pins at the base of the 'crux' dihedral. 20-60m rap depending on conditions. 2: 2 pins on the left about 30' above the 'crux' ice pitch, on the left, with blue webbing. 40m rap. 3: slung tree, it's the only tree on the route that we saw. blue webbing. 55+m rap. 4: 1 bomber pin w/ a biner in a horizontal about 50' left (in a small alcove) of the summit ridge. could be easily backed up with another LA, bugaboo, or stopper. 55m rap. as Doug said, "it's now a trade route".

anyone ever try this?

My harness has gear loops. Gear slings get in the way unless you're climbing easy routes.

Climb: Washington Pass Goodness-Cutthroat, SEWS Date of Climb: 4/15/2005 Trip Report: 4/14/2005 - SW Couloir, South Early Winter Spire Conditions: A little soft, didn't use crampons. The lower half of the route would make a good ski right now. The route will probably stay 'in' for another week or so. the upper part of the couloir had ~1' of snow in it. Great ski conditions on the way down. 5 hours car-car. 4/15/2005 - East Face / Cauthorn-Wilson, Cutthroat Peak Conditions: a fair bit of spindrift down low. some wallowing up high. Watch for rockfall in the dihedral, some of the blocks are quite loose. 8 hours car-car. The route now has fixed rap anchors courtesy of the two teams of us (CKouba & me, Doug_Hutchinson & Travis) who didn't want to descend the N. Ridge in a white out. 4x 60m raps will get you from the ridge to the base of the couloir. I'll post a photo of their location when I can. Gear Notes: 60m half rope 5 pins 6 stoppers 4 cams to 1" 4 screws (Cutthroat) Approach Notes: skis for SEWS Good trail to follow on snowshoes for Cutthroat, skiing would suck. Good glissading to be had down the south ridge.

maybe we'll see you this weekend...

Your photos have definately inspired myself and others to head off the beaten path. Thank you.

Carbon fiber or rubber shaft? bent or straight shaft?

I didn't climb Cutthroat and didn't send the 11c I was working on at Minnehaha. no taxes either.

god I love president bush.

That hex just above the Saber ledge has been there forever. I try to get it every time I'm there. There's also one on Catapault.

gotta love those jacked up trucks. how was Triple Couloirs looking?

that sucks Aaron. can you pick up some shifts at work or something?

cool, I just wanted to know if I should bring an axe or some alternative chopping device.

is it blocked by snow or downed trees?

it does, just getting to them was a little sketchy.

Karate didn't spank me per say, but i did have to hang. The first few pieces on Lion's (~25' or so) were bunk until I got a good green alien in. i haven't done Pack Animal. the Prana tops look good from above.

shameless cross post: (Hwy 20 open again) http://www.cascadeclimbers.com/threadz/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/448485/Main/262751/#Post448485

HWY 20 is open again. WENATCHEE – Snow slides closed the North Cascades Highway about midday on Saturday, March 26th and WSDOT maintenance crews are reopening the roadway to traffic at 1:00 p.m. today, Monday, April 4th, nine days after the initial closure. “We found pretty stable conditions in the avalanche zones,” said WSDOT Twisp Maintenance Supervisor Don Becker, “And the forecast for the next week isn’t calling for any large accumulations of snow.” Maintenance crews have been clearing snow from the highway, outside the slide areas since it closed, so when safety conditions improved, the road could be opened as quickly as possible. “All we had to clear, once the Avalanche Control Team said it was safe, was the slide below Liberty Bell #1, just east of Washington Pass,” said Becker, “And that could be done in about 3 hours, since we already had the crew and equipment up there.” 67” of new snow has accumulated at the top of Washington Pass over the past 9 days, more than at any time this winter. When the road reopens, the temperature is above freezing and the pavement is bare and wet. Travelers can expect some occasional snow flurries. Becker says some of the avalanche chutes may slough some minor amounts of snow over the next few days, but nothing likely to close a traffic lane. The North Cascades Highway had its earliest opening ever on March 10th, only to be closed by snow slides 16 days later. Updates and photos of the spring reopening are posted on the WSDOT SR 20 web page: www.wsdot.wa.gov/northcascades Travelers will encounter construction delays as a rock containment ditch is being built between Newhalem and Diablo. A massive rockslide there, destroyed SR 20 on November 9, 2003. The rockslide left the hillside above the highway extremely unstable and blocked access to the town of Diablo. One of the two lanes will be closed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and flaggers will alternate traffic on the open lane through the work zone. To complete the project by this fall, crews will work during daylight hours, six days a week, Monday through Saturday. http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Regions/NorthCentral/news/2005/SR20Reopensafter9days.htm

You should have seen them at Cinnamon Slab. "This is such a great stance"... NYC007 and I were there too. I've got a couple pics that might end up on here later.